Exeter produced a stunning performance to deservedly open their Aviva Premiership campaign with a victory over hapless Gloucester. Fly-half Gareth Steenson was the hero with a match tally of 17...

London Irish got their season off to the perfect start against Saracens on Saturday as they recorded a 33-16 bonus-point win at Twickenham. The Exiles capitalised on the sin-binning of Alex Goode...

Helen Brosnan has recovered from an ankle injury to be named at out-half in the Ireland team for their Women's Rugby World Cup play-off clash with Scotland at Surrey Sports Park on Sunday (kick-off...

England captain Catherine Spencer believes her side can end New Zealand's dominance of the women's game when the two meet in Sunday's World Cup final.The Black Ferns have won the last three World...

Ospreys and Wales centre Jonathan Spratt is battling to play again this season after knee ligament surgery.The 24-year-old had only recently returned to action after missing most of last season with...

Parramatta chief executive Paul Osborne believes Quade Cooper will stay in rugby union as he has not heard from the Wallabies star for a number of weeks. Before the Wallabies' trip to South...

England captain Catherine Spencer has warned New Zealand that their stranglehold on the World Cup has come to an end. The fiercest rivalry in women's rugby will resume in Sunday's final at...

Ospreys centre Jonathan Spratt has undergone the scheduled surgery required to repair knee ligament damage he suffered three weeks ago. The 24-year old midfielder, who ruptured his ACL against a...

Waikato continued their fine form from last weekend when they closed out North Harbour 36-27 in a thrilling ITM Cup encounter in Albany on Saturday. Following their thrashing of Counties Manukau...

Sale coach Mike Brewer believes that the pace of his side's play was the key factor in their season-opening 35-18 win against Newcastle. The Sharks dominated for large spells against the Falcons...

Southland's five-match winning streak in the ITM Cup came to an end in Whangarei on Saturday, thanks to a 33-22 defeat at the hands of Northland. The hosts outscored the Stags four tries to three...

After five successive defeats in the ITM Cup, Manawatu finally burst to life against Wellington in Palmerston North on Saturday - upsetting the Lions 36-24. The hosts were the better team on the...

Munster have the honour of hosting Magners League newcomers Aironi Rugby for the first time on Saturday night, with the home side including fit-again duo Felix Jones and Denis Leamy, as well as...

Connacht will be hoping to build on the good work of last season when they kickstart new coach Eric Elwood's reign by welcoming the Newport Gwent Dragons to the Sportsground on Saturday...

Captain Jerry Collins struggled to contain his anger with the officials after the Ospreys slipped to a 27-26 Magners League defeat against Ulster."We just couldn't get a roll on," said...

."The tournament's a very difficult one full-stop and obviously they're factors but there's not too much we can do about that so it's best not to focus on that sort of stuff," Elsom said."There are...

, the departing Force coach who Graham has been assisting there, and the 38-year-old has worked under five national coaches.He is set to replace Mitchell at the helm of the...

Sep 4 2010 by Our Correspondent, South Wales Echo ULSTER opened their Magners League campaign in style by taking the scalp of reigning champions Ospreys in a pulsating game at Ravenhill. The lead...

Sep 4 2010 by Gareth Griffiths, South Wales Echo SCOTTISH outside-half Dan Parks is looking forward to a reunion with some of his international team-mates when he make his Blues competitive debut...

Sep 4 2010 by Our Correspondent, South Wales Echo THE Colorado Rapids have confirmed Danny Cipriani has joined them for training, fuelling speculation over the exiled England fly-half’s...

Sep 4 2010 by Our Correspondent, South Wales Echo SEAN Lineen’s Glasgow young guns pulled off a dramatic Magners League victory over a powerful Leinster outfit, with growing confidence and a...

One of New Zealand's oldest schools has suffered earthquake damage to its buildings.Christ's College, established in 1851, sits right in the middle of the city of Christchurch and spokeswoman Jane...

Manawatu have shocked Wellington in their ITM Cup match in Palmerston North.The Turbos have run in four tries to three to beat the Lions 36-24 after leading 14-12 at halftime.The result also sees...

Simon Thomas , Western Mail DAN PARKS will be looking to continue his love affair with the Magners League when he makes his competitive debut for the Blues this evening. No-one has scored more...

Sep 4 2010 by Stephen Johnson, Western Mail GLAMORGAN WANDERERS chairman Alyn Humphries was realistic in saying: “Survival is the name of the game for us this season. “We have lost a...

Sep 4 2010 by Our Correspondent, Western Mail THE visit of champions The New Saints to Stebonheath Park is normally one of the classic Welsh Premier occasions of the season but it will be a more...

Sep 4 2010 Western Mail NOT even 21 points from Wales outside-half Dan Biggar could save the Ospreys from making a losing start to the defence of their Magners League title in Belfast last night. ...

Simon Roberts , Western Mail PAUL TURNER will be looking to break his duck with the Dragons when he faces Irish minnows Connacht in Galway. Turner’s Dragons have never won in this part of...

Sep 4 2010 by Gareth Griffiths, Western Mail THE Scarlets will be making history tonight when they become the first side to play a Magners League fixture in Italy. Nigel Davies will take his...

Sonny Bill Williams hasn't been able to resist a dig at the NRL after an impressive debut for Canterbury in the ITM Cup.The red and blacks scored three tries to none to defeat Bay of Plenty 28-9 in...

Quade Cooper's childhood idol, former New Zealand fly half Carlos Spencer, has urged the rising playmaker to ignore the advances of rugby league and set alight the 2011 World Cup. Spencer advised...

Manawatu wing Shannon Paku will have some mixed emotions when he takes the field in the Turbos' ITM Cup clash in Palmerston North this afternoon.The former Lions winger says it'll be an odd...

It can be dangerous to read too much into first‑night reviews. This time last year Sale beat the champions Leicester, only to end up scrabbling for...

Ben McCalman could see them play a more direct game."(Brisbane's) behind us," Pocock said."For us this week it was going back and focusing on our game and concentrating on the little things that in...

."It was always interesting that they'd left Chisholm out, he's a good footballer, he's good in the lineouts and he's a good player," Smit told a press conference on Friday."It's difficult to know...

Sonny Bill Williams has celebrated his debut match in the ITM Cup with a win as Canterbury proved too strong for Bay of Plenty 28-9 at AMI Stadium in Christchurch.Williams made an early entrance when...

A straightforward victory for Andy Murray in the second round of the US Tennis Open in New York.The fourth seeded Brit has cruised to a 7-5 6-3 6-0 victory over Jamaican Dustin Brown.American John...

Striking radiographers have abandoned their industrial action to respond immediately to the earthquake in Christchurch.Staff in Christchurch were scheduled to take part in a partial strike today but...

A state of emergency has been declared in Christchurch following a massive earthquake this morning.A quake with magnitude 7.4 struck just 30km from the city at 4.30am.Residents have been left with no...

It looks as though the New Zealand women's hockey team will get a game at the World Cup in Argentina today.The Black Sticks are scheduled to play Japan in a group match, but there was some doubt over...

A commanding victory for Australian Samantha Stosur in the third round of the US Tennis Open in New York.The fifth seed has crushed Italian Sara Errani 6-2 6-3.Russian Elena Dementieva is also...

New Zealand have named a strong squad to race against the odds at the October's UCI World Road Cycling Championships in Melbourne.Pro Tour riders Julian Dean, Hayden Roulston and Greg Henderson make...

The Government's asking Cantabrians not to panic. Civil Defence Minister John Carter says the situation is being properly managed, but there are things residents can do to help themselves such as...

Ulster opened their Magners League campaign in style by taking the scalp of reigning champions Ospreys in a pulsating game at Ravenhill. The lead changed hands several times and the match remained...

Mike Brewer's tenure as head coach of Sale got off to the perfect start as the Sharks recorded a convincing 35-18 win over Newcastle. In the first match of the new Aviva Premiership season,...

Glasgow got their new Magners League campaign off to the perfect start with a gutsy victory over Leinster on Friday. A fiercely-contested first half opened quietly enough with Fergus McFadden and...

The new Magners League season got under way with a pulsating clash at Ravenhill, as Ulster edged out champions Ospreys 27-26. A rollercoaster of an opening-night contest remained in the balance...

Stephen Ferris and Darren Cave supplied first half tries and out-half Niall O'Connor kicked 17 points as Ulster dug deep to overcome reigning Magners League champions, the Ospreys, at...

Having built a 16-6 half-time lead, Leinster allowed Glasgow Warriors to seize the initiative in the second half as a late penalty and drop goal from replacement Duncan Weir completed a 22-19...